Archives for January 31, 2018

‘Butler, who spent the previous four seasons with the Texans, attended LaSalle High School in Pennsylvania, and he and McDermott were football teammates there. Butler previously spent two seasons, including one as defensive coordinator at Penn State but joined Nittany Lions coach Bill O’Brien in Houston.’

‘Even with the Bills, Hogan was always seen as more of an overachieving fringe player than someone who could make a real difference. But that never discouraged him, even after the Bills placed a low enough restricted-free-agency tender on him to make it easy for the Patriots to put together a contract offer they knew the Bills wouldn’t match.’

‘”You don’t take anything for granted. I mean, it’s hard to get to this game, it’s a very competitive league. But when you’re around special people like we are this year here with the Eagles, you know you have a chance. And it’s great to come into an organization that really invests everything they have into getting to this game and winning this game.”‘

‘There are 18 players on the Pats’ 53-man roster who came into the league as undrafted free agents. That’s among the most in the NFL and more than Bill Belichick employed on any of his five Super Bowl championship squads.’

‘The saving grace for Wood was that he had some old teammates and friends there. A celebration could still happen behind the scenes. Ryan Fitzpatrick, who played with Wood from 2009 to 2012, was dressed in a t-shirt with Wood’s face on it for the press conference and shared what Wood meant to him afterward.’

‘Butler takes over a group of defensive backs that includes Pro Bowl safety Micah Hyde as well as safety Jordan Poyer and cornerback Tre’Davious White, who are coming off impressive debut seasons with the Bills.’

‘Money will certainly factor into Kirk Cousins’ next home, but the quarterback will also look to join a team that can win now and in the future. Some of the other teams that could pursue Cousins include the Jets, Broncos, Browns, Cardinals and Jaguars. Jacksonville is the most attractive option on the list, but the team may stick with Blake Bortles after the team reached the AFC Championship Game. After Jacksonville, no other team stands out as being more attractive than the Bills. If Buffalo makes a competitive offer, they could shock the league and land Cousins.’

‘Tyrod’s reverse value: On the flip side, the deal shows how valuable Taylor would be if he stayed with the Bills. Smith’s cap hit in 2017 will be $17 million but the full details on his extension have yet to be released. He’ll average $23.5 million a year over it. Taylor, who took the Bills to the postseason, will only have a cap hit of $18 million for the Bills next season. If he stays, Buffalo has approximately $30 million in cap space, depending on how the team works out Eric Wood’s retirement on the salary cap. Finishing out Taylor’s deal might be the best option since he carries an $8.6 million dead cap hit next year if the Bills release to trade him. It’s a sticky situation and I don’t envy Buffalo general manager Brandon Beane when I think about it.’

‘Butler spent the past four seasons in the same role with the Texans before being fired after their season ended. He previously worked as a coach at the college level and has ties to McDermott. Both grew up in the Philadelphia area and played on the same high school football team.’

‘Byrd is the father of former Bills’ safety Jairus Byrd. He was hired last offseason to Sean McDermott’s staff. Under his guidance, Bills’ safety Micah Hyde was named to his first Pro Bowl, Hyde and fellow safety Jordan Poyer both earned separate AFC Defensive Player of the Month honors, Tre’Davious White earned a Defensive Rookie of the Month award, and White is a solid candidate for the league’s Defensive Rookie of the Year.’

‘Some will look at Hughes’ stats from the 2017 season (44 tackles, 4.0 sacks, 1 forced fumble) and think that he wasn’t worth the money he was paid. However, the box score story is merely a small percentage of his overall effectiveness on the field, and if you watch him on a play-to-play and game-to-game basis, you’ll realize just how important he is to the defensive scheme.’

‘”In order to survive this business, you’ve got to be able to adapt,” Darby said. “Me being in Buffalo, getting new coaches, learning a whole new defensive scheme and getting traded in the middle of camp, it was a lot. I had to go in and try to learn a whole other playbook in a few weeks. Then, I get hurt week one. Sit out two months and then, come back trying to catch up to the pace that (his teammates have) been playing on, guys that have been broken in. It was a lot. It taught me a lot. And we made it here, so it’s a crazy journey.”‘

‘Nominated by his daughter Chelsea, who is also a Bills Season Ticket Member, Langdon was selected as the Bills Season Ticket Member of the Game for Buffalo’s Week 15 matchup against the Miami Dolphins. Undenounced to Langdon, who was ecstatic to be chosen for the award, the Bills had another surprise waiting for him. Celebrated during the game’s first quarter break, Langdon was also named the winner of a trip to the 2018 Pro Bowl as part of Buffalo’s annual Fan Appreciation Day game. Shocked and excited by the news, Langdon, who’d never attended a Pro Bowl, was thrilled to share the experience with his son-in-law.’